Gannon bruised his collarbone and left the game, returned in the third quarter but was ineffective in the Raiders’ 16-3 loss.

Ray Lewis, the NFL’s defensive player of the year, also was fined $7,500 last week for hitting Tennessee’s Steve McNair in the chest in the Ravens’ 24-10 win the week before. McNair missed one series, then returned.

Neither hit brought a penalty on the field.

*

The extra week off before the Super Bowl has plenty of detractors, but don’t count the Ravens among them. Unlike the Giants – who had a bye, beat the Eagles and hardly broke a sweat in humiliating Minnesota in the NFC Championship – the Ravens have had a grueling run from their wild-card spot, and could clearly use the extra time off.

“The key for us this week is to get our legs back and rest, and yet still get some practice done,” said coach Brian Billick. “We’ve been on a heck of a [tough] road. We’re a little bit different than the Giants in that regard. We’ll go at it a little harder and more physically next week.”

Which will include a rare practice in pads. Baltimore almost never practices in pads, which keeps them fresh to physically pummel offenses. But Billick said with a low-key week and the players off Sunday and Tuesday and traveling Monday, he doesn’t want them to forget what it feels like to hit somebody.

“Between having the pads off for awhile and backing off this week, then we’ll have two days off . . . I just want to get the pads back on just to get that little bit of a pop. I just feel like that’s a long time to go without hitting somebody.”

*

Starting SS Kim Herring, who missed the last two games with an ankle injury, looked fine in practice yesterday, as did LB Cornell Brown, who missed the AFC Championship with a pulled hamstring. LG Edwin Mulitalo, who left the Raider game with a mild concussion, seems recovered as well.

“We’re pretty good. Kim moved around very well. Cornell Brown, likewise. If we were to play this weekend, I’d be fairly optimistic,” Billick said. “Mulitalo’s fine. He’s like Trent [Dilfer] was a few days ago. He was in Honolulu for a while on Sunday, but he’s back now.”

*

TE Shannon Sharpe, who does an investment commercial with Jason Sehorn, says people shouldn’t give the Giant CB so much grief for his offseason endorsements.

“They’re saying he cares more about advertising and being on Madison Avenue than playing football,” Sharpe said. “But the guy’s a heck of a player. I don’t see the problem. If he can juggle the two, so be it.”